Capsule reviews: 'Moneyball,' 'Pearl Jam Twenty'

The Associated Press

Published
8:00 pm EDT, Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Capsule reviews of films opening this week:

'Killer Elite'

Head butts would seem to hurt, right? That's clearly the point of them, but it would seem to be just as painful to be the butt-er as the butt-ee. This is probably the most primal method of attack on display here, but even the noisy intensity and frequency of the skull bashings -- and pistol whippings and gut punches -- don't register as anything beyond generic action-picture violence. The fact that director and co-writer Gary McKendry has shot all these brawls with the usual shaky cam and cut them in quick, choppy fashion only adds to how forgettable the film is. And you'd think that any movie starring Robert De Niro, Clive Owen and Jason Statham would be one you'd want to remember. "Killer Elite" allows them to show off some of the presence and personality that made these men major movie stars, but ultimately they're just cogs in a cliched revenge tale. Statham stars as Danny, the typical special-ops, killing-machine-for-hire Statham tends to play. He wants to retire, but gets drawn back in for that tried-and-true One Last Job when his mentor (De Niro) is kidnapped by an Omani sheik. Danny has to kill the men who killed the sheik's sons to ensure his release. Owen plays the enforcer for a shadowy British society who's on Danny's tail. R for strong violence, language and some sexuality/nudity. 116 minutes. Two stars out of four.

-- Christy Lemire, AP Movie Critic

'Machine Gun Preacher'

Gerard Butler gives it his all as the title character in this drama based on the true story of biker-turned-humanitarian Sam Childers. It's a performance that's gruff and defiant, volatile and raging, and even tender at times -- the kind of role Mel Gibson might have played 20 years ago. Childers lived a life of drugs and crime until he found Jesus, then traveled to Sudan to build an orphanage for the youngest victims of the ravaged African nation's civil war. But even though director Marc Forster's film is rooted in actual events, it's hard to shake the uncomfortable sensation of watching yet another story that glorifies the white savior. Aside from Souleymane Sy Savane as the rebel soldier who serves as Sam's friend and guide, the black characters who prompt Sam to sacrifice everything and put himself in danger feel more like ideas than fleshed-out humans. Forster clearly means well in bringing such an inspiring story to the screen, and he does depict this place vividly -- both its natural beauty and its brutality. But he makes some awkward tonal shifts between the violence in Africa and the increasing instability at home in rural Pennsylvania, where his ex-stripper wife (Michelle Monaghan) and their daughter (Madeline Carroll) are waiting for him. Michael Shannon offers some intriguing moments, as always, as Sam's former running buddy, but ultimately doesn't get enough to do. R for violent content including disturbing images, language, some drug use and a scene of sexuality. 123 minutes.

Two stars out of four.

-- Christy Lemire, AP Movie Critic

'Moneyball'

You don't have to know about VORP to enjoy the story of how a bunch of stat geeks changed the way baseball teams assess and acquire players. Sure, it helps if you're a fan of the sport and if you've read Michael Lewis' breezy and engaging best-seller "Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game." Sabermetrics -- the process of applying statistical formulas, rather than on-field appearance and general makeup, to determine a player's worth -- wouldn't seem like an inherently cinematic topic. But Lewis made lesser-known guys like Scott Hatteberg and Chad Bradford leap off the page. And the cajoling patter from Billy Beane, the Oakland A's general manager who pioneered this experimental philosophy, would seem tailor-made for screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, who co-wrote the script along with fellow veteran scribe Steven Zaillian. Still, what's most pleasing about Bennett Miller's film doesn't really have to do with baseball. As Beane, Brad Pitt is at his charismatic best -- a little weary, a little weathered, but that complexity only makes him more appealing. Jonah Hill is at his best here, too, as Beane's sidekick: the perfect foil for such a force of nature. He and Pitt bounce off each other beautifully. But what's wrong here has nothing to do with baseball, either. "Moneyball" never feels like it's building toward anything, even if you know how the A's 2002 season unfolded. PG-13 for some strong language. 126 minutes.

Three stars out of four.

-- Christy Lemire, AP Movie Critic

'Pearl Jam Twenty'

In Cameron Crowe's fan-friendly retrospective documentary of the band, the long-haired glory of the early 1990s' Seattle rock scene is in full display. There are certainly more astute observations to make about the film and the band, but nevertheless: my, the hair. There's a lot of nostalgia for the era going around, and "Pearl Jam Twenty" (which is being released in theaters but will air on PBS in October) comes at the same time as the 20th-anniversary feting of "Nevermind," the opus from Seattle's other '90s legend, Nirvana. Whereas Nirvana's story is brief and tragic, Pearl Jam's is long and largely heartwarming. Crowe has a history with the band, having been a music journalist (an occupation he chronicled in his "Almost Famous") and a Seattle resident around the time Pearl Jam formed. His "Singles" (1992) depicted the grunge scene of Seattle and even included a memorable cameo from Pearl Jam. Early in the film, Crowe narrates this personal history, and makes obvious his enthusiasm for the music, as he says, "that came from guys who stayed indoors a lot." On the whole, though, he recedes from the film, relying on old performance footage, old band interviews and his intimate sit-downs with the band's members. This is a loving portrait of Pearl Jam, and one with almost no outside voices to contextualize the band's accomplishment. Not rated but contains explicit language. 120 minutes.